I warned you about this guy. Better Know a Candidate: Mark ‘I’d like to buy a vowel’ Brnovich. He is a Tenther “states rights!” Neo-Confederate dead-ender who used to work for the Goldwater Institute that specializes in this nonsense.
Newly elected state Attorney General Mark Brnovich is going to renew former Gov. Jan Brewer’s effort to deny drivers licenses to the “DREAMers.” Arizona to appeal court order letting ‘dreamers’ drive:
[The AG’s] office filed a notice Friday it is appealing a month-old ruling by U.S. District Judge David Campbell that Arizona illegally denied licenses for those who qualify for the Obama administration’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
Campbell rejected arguments by attorneys for the state that DACA recipients are in this country illegally.
Friday’s filing by Brnovich does not provide details of what the state will now argue to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which rejected a state appeal last year.
In December, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to block a ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit requiring the state to issue driver’s licenses to the so-called “DREAMers.” U.S. Supreme Court rejected Gov. Brewer’s request to deny DREAMers a driver’s license. So this appeal is just beating a dead horse. The matter has already been considered and decided.
In a prepared statement, Brnovich said his office just got the case last month from the governor’s office. Former Gov. Jan Brewer had hired her own attorney and was directing the litigation, running up legal fees in the $1.5 million range.
On taking office in January, Gov. Doug Ducey washed his hands of the issue. As to what the state might claim on appeal, Brnovich press aide Kristen Keogh said the file is “now being reviewed to determine the best course of action.”
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Keogh said Brnovich sees the issue as one of states’ rights.
But of course he does. This is all about “states rights!” and standing up to the big bad federal “guvmint” and that imperial president lawbreaker Barack Obama to make the GOP crazy base happy, just as Brnovich promised them he would do on the campaign trail. And this fool is going to piss away even more of your tax dollars in pursuing this politically motivated frivolous appeal. This has nothing to do with the actual decision of the court:
Campbell’s ruling, if upheld, said [states’ rights is] not the issue.
At the heart of the fight is a 1996 Arizona law that says licenses are available only to those whose presence in this country is “authorized by federal law.”
The Department of Homeland Security announced in 2012 that individuals brought to this country illegally as children would be allowed to remain if they met certain other conditions. Those found qualified also would be issued permits to work legally.
But just days before Homeland Security began taking applications, Brewer issued an executive order directing the Department of Transportation not to issue licenses to DACA recipients. She contends the federal agency has no legal authority to permit them to remain or work, meaning they are not “authorized” to be here.
Campbell’s ruling went beyond the question of authorization.
The judge pointed out that Arizona has for years given licenses to thousands of other people in this country illegally after Homeland Security gave them administrative permission to stay. That, he ruled, makes denying licenses to DACA recipients a violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
Campbell said he was not ruling Arizona has to grant licenses to everyone who is not a citizen.
“But if the state chooses to confer licenses on some individuals who have been temporarily authorized to stay by the federal government, it may not deny them to similarly situated individuals without a rational basis for the distinction,” he wrote.
I find it curious that Governor Dicey Doug Ducey, the chief executive officer of Arizona, is punting to Brnovich on this case. After all, this case comes out of the Governor’s office in the first place, it was not one being litigated by the AG’s office.
Just last week the editors of The Republic were praising Ducey for showing “leadership” by intervening in the dispute between the Board of Education and Superintendent of Public Instruction Dianne Douglas, Doug Ducey wins this education spat, despite the fact, as Robert Robb correctly noted, Ducey had no constitutional authority in the matter. Douglas, Ducey both in the wrong. This could have led to an ugly lawsuit between constitutional officers. That’s setting the bar pretty low for what constitutes “leadership” at The Republic.
Now here was something that Ducey could have shown actual leadership on — his opponent in the election, Fred DuVal, had promised that he would rescind Governor Brewer’s executive order and dismiss the DREAMers lawsuit “on day one” — but “Gov. Doug Ducey washed his hands of the issue.” Sounds like political cowardice to me, certainly not leadership.
The Republic’s E.J. Montini at least calls it right. The buck (on dreamers driving) does NOT stop with Ducey:
Gov. Doug Ducey could have made this call.
Instead he passed the buck to new Attorney General Mark Brnovich, who made the wrong call.
So, is this how it’s going to work with the new governor? The most controversial decisions get shuffled off to others?
At lease former Gov. Jan Brewer called her own shots.
Brnovich has decided that he’s going to waste more taxpayer money in an attempt to appeal a federal judge’s ruling that forced Arizona to grand drivers licenses to dreamers, those young people who qualify for the Obama administration’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
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Brnovich wants to waste more money.
And Ducey, who handed the case over the the attorney general, is letting him.
The state’s going to lose, again. Taxpayers are going to lose, again.
And voters are left to wonder if Ducey will ever tackle a really difficult, potentially divisive but ultimately important issue — again.
Only when it benefits him politically, E.J. Only when it benefits him.
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Pamela, Your comment, “The state is broke, but instead of doing anything to raise revenue, the Ducey administration has proposed multiple moves to waste even more money. It’s surreal. Is their goal no government– except police and jails?”
Ramping up private prison spending, witch-hunt campaigns hauled out the first weeks in office, arrogance and lack of responsibility in the civilian prison teacher rape by the AG’s office and ADC (a years-long arrogant culture, that demands change), certainly should raise concerns about what lies ahead for the people — working in high-risk fields for the state and the people/taxpayers, who are “prospects” for the criminal injustice industry and “prison-state” Arizona. The budget priorities confirm it (never discussed during the campaign) and now define the state and where its headed.
Good luck, tourism (LE trolling for “prospects”-for-$$$’s with glitzy PR materials and Times Square billboards).
Arizona lawmakers are responsible for the mass incarceration of Arizona’s people. Shameful. They approved new $50,000,000 Super Max prison that Arizona does NOT need. Built without a “needs” request, without public input (Senator Shooter told the people they could not speak or sign in at the kiosk). In a matter of minutes budget approved. All seen laughing out in the legislature courtyard.
And now, we have the Governor slashing all state agency and education budgets while asking for an unprecedented hundreds of millions for new private prisons?? Using taxpayers’ dollars to enrich the out-of-state private prison corporations (record breaking profits).
A state that favors incarceration over education, not only bodes poorly for the people, their rights, while enriching the private prison profiteers (the AG’s cronies), but is self-destructing the state and its society. You decide if this answers your question.
Brnovich used to be exec director of the Goldwater Institute. He respresents their interests, not the interests of the citizens of Arizona.
This is a waste of money. I feel like Alice in Wonderland. Nothing is logical. The state is broke, but instead of doing anything to raise revenue, the Ducey administration has proposed multiple moves to waste even more money. It’s surreal. Is their goal no government– except police and jails?
“THE HOUSE I LIVE IN” Official Trailer #1 (2012) Sundance Award-winning Documentary by Edward Jarecki, filmmaker – YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0atL1HSwi8
It should be a civic duty for ALL people to watch 4 decades of failed policy, where we are today and where we’re headed — unless the people speak up nothing will change. The “old school” prosecutors, steeped in the ’70’ and ’80’s, have destroyed many innocent lives and their families. It is time for “smart on crime”. The taxpayers have been conned and bilked long enough. The elected officials and lawmakers have put their own constituents and the taxpayers at risk for harm, using the taxpayers’ $$$’s to do it.
The Attorney General is the top prosecutor in the state. His job, as a minister of justice, is to seek fair justice. But, unfortunately, Brnovich is a politician, who fails to represent ALL the people. Unaccountable and has absolute immunity. Who wouldn’t like a job like that. This “insider” had this to say, which summarizes the reality we live in, with a failed and broken justice system, that is self-destructing the state and its people and society.
Wake up folks! The legacy you have left for your children and grandchildren is shameful.
Elizabeth A. Benedetto | February 21, 2015 at 4:03 pm | Reply
“Yes, it is very true politics is a cause of wrongful “prosecutions.” But whether elected or appointed, the prosecutor’s position mandates that he act on behalf of his state…. and so he does, however necessary — as do all other cohorts, agents, and employees of the state (and cronies therein). It is down-right silly and naïve to believe that an ambitious, corrupt, depraved, self-serving prosecutor could possibly wield THAT much power and convict completely innocent American citizens (and scores of them, yet… year after year) without the cooperation and teamwork of his co-workers (i.e., other state employees, agents, assigns, and agencies — e.g., judges, assigned public pretenders, court-appointed agents, doctors, sheriffs, police, investigators, court reporters, corrections officers, bailiffs, clerks, hospitals, jails, et al, etc.). Private lawyers (and bar associations) are equally maniacal in their self-serving, self-governing business dealings. It’s no wonder approximately ninety-five percent (95%) of people “accused” of crimes plea out. They are coerced. Can you imagine if the states and attorneys had to do an honest day’s work for even one (1) case?! It’s not efficient. It’s not economical. It’s not practical. It’s bad business for them. Too much work. Too many cases. Too costly. Too labor intensive. So why bother… when they don’t have to? No oversight. No accountability. No consequences. And the communities?! The victims, their families?! They’ve just been duped and have no clue.”
It is utterly impossible for any elected official to represent ALL the people on any given issue. That is because the “people” are always divided on any given issue. If an official decides to do one thing, half the people are upset. If he does the other, the other half is up set. That is why elections matter. You want someone in office who will do what you want them to do. Then you will be happy…